Halloween Costume: Steampunk Atropos

So now that Steampunk has been perfectly explained (and thanks to my friend Erika for sending this my way), I can now explain my Halloween costume.

First, a little background. Several months ago, my friend Erika let me know about a group of people that were going to be throwing a Masquerade party in December. Knowing that I want to one day have my own Masquerade Ball, she knew I would love this. And so, we started talking costumes. We thought that a group costume would be fun and eventually decided on The Three Fates from Greek Mythology. (Clotho spins the thread which represents the life of man; Lachesis measures the life; and Atropos is the one who ends the life by cutting the thread.)

But, because we can't make things easy on ourselves, we decided that instead of Greek robes/dresses, we would do the Three Fates in Steampunk style. And we decided that life would be much easier if they doubled as our Halloween costumes (because why invest so much in an outfit not to wear it more than once?).

So, I am Atropos, the bringer of death. I decided to use dark colors (browns and blacks), with scissors and skulls as my defining characteristics. But, since these WERE going to be for a party, I decided to try and still keep it elegant. That's the nice thing about Steampunk -- you can make it as grungy or as elegant as you want. Anything goes!

I found this blouse on clearance online and that sort of began my jumping off point for colors. It was this unusual brown/taupe so I then found a beautiful fabric that would combine all the browns (shirt and skirt) and blacks, plus it didn't hurt that it had swirls and paisley and a touch of metallic.

So, with sewing and jewelry making and making accessories, and making sure I had everything in addition (parasol, glasses, shoes), this is me in my outfit (courtesy of the hubby):

But then I noticed that this one picture, while it captures the whole outfit nicely, you can't see a lot of the details. So here they are!

Beginning at the top, with my cute little mini top hat -- I ADORE this!!

And then the earrings, which I am really proud of! (I love those tiny skulls!)

Then moving down to my choker cameo.

And then my timepiece necklace (because no Steampunk outfit is complete without a pocket watch).

And last, but not least, for now, the chain that goes around the waist and holds up my giant scissors.

I do have to plan a professional photo shoot with my two other "sisters" sometime soon, and hopefully we'll get some great shots! However, before that there are a few things I need to tweak and add. I was supposed to have fishnet undersleeves, but they weren't cooperating that night. Also, since I knew I wouldn't have time, but definitely something I'm planning to add is a cuff bracelet (with the scissor charms). Also, not that it will be noticeable, but I was wearing these very uncomfortable Granny boots, which I will replace with another pair of shoes that I will make spats for to match the outfit.

[But, I have to tell you, one of my favorite things is the glasses. They're a brown metal and fit awesomely with this outfit. They are not my normal glasses and yes, they ARE prescription. And, not only did they make it to me the DAY I needed them, but they were also less than $20. Yes, that's right. Cute prescription glasses for only $20 (and that included regular shipping). I found this place called Zenni Optical online. They have tons of glasses starting at $6.95, and while I was hesitant, I figured that for 20 bucks it was worth experimenting. And boy, I'm glad I did! You DO have to have your full prescription to order them, but I believe your eye doctor is required by law to provide that to you. So, if you need to get a second pair of glasses to have around (always a good idea) or even need prescription sunglasses for cheap, try Zenni out!]

And that, my friends was my Halloween (and hopeful masquerade party) costume! The nice thing about this costume is that I can still keep it Steampunk and just change out the accessories to change my character, as it were. What did YOU do for Halloween? Did you dress up?

And, as you can see, I apparently take requests for topics for my blog during NaBloPoMo. ^_^ If you want me to write/post about something, let me know and we'll see what I can do.

NaBloPoMo day 2 completed!!